HUMAN LIFE A PRECIOUS GIFT

INNER GIFTS THAT ELEVATE US

A 50-YEAR-OLD construction worker was waiting for his train in a New York City subway station. Nearby, a young man stumbled to the edge of the platform and fell  onto the tracks just as the train was coming. Making a split-second decision, the construction worker leaped onto the tracks and held the other man down as the train passed safely over them both. 

During the Nazi  era, Jehovah's Witnesses in Europe refused to say "Heil Hitler!" because the German word heil means "salvation."  Their deeply held belief was that Jesus Christ was their Savior and that "there is no salvation in anyone else." (Acts 4:12) For refusing to idolize Hitler, many were torn away from their home and sent to concentration camps, where they continued to hold on to their Christian principles.

These examples show that a human can put the welfare of another-even a total stranger-before self and a respect for principles before personal freedom. Does such behavior reflect the notion that humans are simply highly evolved animals? Or does it suggest that we are higher creation?  Think about that as you reflect on the following questions: 

* Why do we have a conscience, an inner sense of right or wrong?

* Why do we feel awe when we reflect on the wonders of creation?

* Why do we enjoy music, painting, poetry, and other art forms?  After all, they are not essential for our survival.

* Why do people of virtually every culture manifest a desire to commune with a higher being?

* Why do we ask:  'Why am I here?' 'What is the purpose of life?'

* When someone dies, why do we engage in various ceremonies and rituals?

* And why is belief in an afterlife virtually universal? Is our inborn desire to live forever just an evolutionary hoax? 

Next time: HUMAN LIFE A PRECIOUS GIFT - INNER GIFTS THAT ELEVATE US - Where Answers Can Be Found

From the Awake! magazine